Side guide for printing and lithographic presses



(No Model.)

F. O. DAVIS.

SIDE GUIDE FOR PRINTING AND LITHOGRAPHIG PRESSBS.

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INITED STATES PATENT QrFicE.

FREDERICK O. DAVIS, OF AUSTIN, TEXAS.

SIDE GUIDE FOR PRINTING AND LITHOGRAPHIC PRESSES.

JQECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 475,677, dated May 24,1892. Application filed November 28, 1891. Serial No. 413,413. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, FREDERICK O. DAVIS, a citizen of the United States,residing at Austin, in the county of Travis and State of Texas, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Side Guides for Printingand LithographicPresses; and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

My invention relates to side feedguides for printing or lithographicpresses; and it consists in a novel construction of such feedguides, aswill be hereinafter described and specifically claimed, wherebysimplicity of construction, facility of adjustment, and greatereffectiveness are secured and a double guide on a single support isprovided, and which may be adjusted a short distance or entirely acrossthe feed board or base of a printing or other press and can be usedeither on the right or left hand side of the press.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View showing thefeed-board of a printing-press which is provided with my improvedadjustable side guide, the guide being shown as permanently adjusted inplace. Fig. 2 is a broken top view of the front end of the feed-board,my improved side guide, and a portion of the press. Fig. 3 is a verticaltransverse section of the side guide. Fig. 4 is an end view of the guideand a sectional view of its track-plates. Fig. 5 is a section of thetrack-plates and side elevation of one of the conducting and guardingplates of the side guide proper as entered into the track of the guide;and Fig. 6 is a section of one of the directing,guiding, and guardingplates in the line :0 0c of Fig. 3, showing the square hole in same forfitting on one of the square ends of the adjustingscrew.

A in the drawings designates the feedboard or base-feed portion of aprinting or lithographic press.

B is a metal grooved track extended entirely across the press andgraduated by scalemarks for the purpose of making large or small or verynice adjustments to suit the diiferent sizes of sheets guided and fed tothe press.

0 is a side guide fitted to travel laterally in the track B, theextentof travel being either entirely across the feed-board or feed-baseor a partof the way across, as occasion may require.

The guide-track is formed by means of two metal plates at b of a lengthequal to the width of the feed board A. The plate Cb has an angulargroove 0, having a slight curvature at 0', formed in its top surfacefrom end to end, and theplate b is secured to the depressed portion ofthe plate a by screws d, so as to overhang a portion of said groove 0and stand flush with the top surface of the plate a. The heads of thescrews cl, which fasten the plate I) to the plate a, are depressed, soas to be level with the plates at and b or a little below the same, andthus offer no obstruction. The track thus formed is fastened in a grooveof the feed board or base by means of screws in such a manner thatitself, as well as its fastening-screws, lies flush with the board andoffers no obstruction to the guide or paper being fed into the press.

The guide is of metal and in form of an oblong block, rounded on top,vertical on its sides, and horizontal at its bottom. The bottom portionis formed with an angular tongue f, which exactly fits the track-groove0, its shape being such that when it is enteredinto the groove andconfined by plate Z) a firm connection is maintained between the guideand the track-plates, and at the same time the guide is steadied in themost perfect manner during its use or manipulations.

About midway of the guide-block a recess g is cut, and into this recessa ratchet-wheel h is fitted, and through this ratchet-wheel and theguide block an adjusting screwthreaded rod m is passed. The thread ofthe rod matches a screw-thread in the eye of the ratchet-wheel, while itpasses snugly through unthreaded round holes in the block on each sideof the ratchet-wheel. The teeth of the ratchet-wheel and the threads ofthe screw are constructed to work correspondingly with each other, sothat any adjustment of the ratchet wheel will equal any adjustment givento the guiding, guarding, and directing plates 71., applied on thesquared ends of the screw-rod. As shown, the ends of the screwrod extenda considerable distance beyond the ends of the guide-blocks, and on theextended ends the guiding, guarding, and directing plates n are securedby means of square formations p on the ends of the screwrod and in theplates themselves and confining-screws 19, passed into sockets in theends of the screw-rod. This means of fastening the guiding, guarding,and directing plates 97. prevents their turning, and these plates inturn prevent the screw from turning when the ratchet-wheel is turned forthe purpose of moving the screw longitudinally and adjusting the platesfarther from or nearer to the guide-block, accordingly as the sizes ofsheets being fed require. The plates n for a portion of their length arevertical with the feed-board, and at the center of their width they areformed with an approximately-V- shaped tonguej, having a slightourvaturej, corresponding to the curvature c of the track-groove at thepoint where it bears, as shown. The curvatures c and j avoid an angularcorner for the sheets to strike against, and thus hanging or detentionof the sheets at the groove is avoided. The remainder of the plate iscurved, as at 19 and extends around and abuts against the surface of thevertical portion at a point near its lower edge, thus forming a guardfor preventing the sheet gliding upward and still leaving room enoughfor the passage of the sheets of paper, whose edges bear against theguiding, guarding, and directing plates n while theyare passing into thepress. The V -shaped tongue guards against the sheets entering beneaththe guide, While, as stated, the overhanging curved portion preventsupward gliding of the sheet and insures the direction of the sheetagainst the guiding part of the plate at, and said curved portion alsotends to keep the sheet in its place.

By having a plate n on each end of the screw-rod m the guide 0 can beused on either the right or left hand side of the press. If desired, theguide may have only one plate 1 2, and a guide-block be used on eachedge of the feed-board of the press; but of course it is far better toconstruct the guide-block with two plates 41, as shown.

In order to fasten the guide proper to the feed-board or base, acam-lever D is provided on the block, and by turning up this lever theguide can be quickly moved laterally any distance desired by hand, andthen nicer adj ustment made by turning the ratchet-wheel hon thescrew-rod, and this done by turning down the cam-lever against thefeed-board or the track-plate thereof the guide will be locked in itsadjusted position.

For holding the ratchet-wheel h from turning a spring-pawl E isprovided, and by turning this pawl away from the ratchet-Wheel saidwheel can be turned to effect the nicer adjustments, and this done, byallowing the pawl to fall into gear with the ratchet-teeth theratchet-wheel will be held from turning.

My improved side guide, with its trackplates, does not render the pressunsightly,

but rather adds to its ornamentation, as all of the parts may beconstructed of polished or brightened metal, and at the same time itprotects the feed-board.

WVhat I claim as my invention is- 1. The combination, with a feed boardor base of a printing-press, of a grooved guiding-track formed of platesextending entirely across the board, a single block having an angularguiding and retaining tongue, means for holding the block afterit isadjusted, and right and left hand adjustable side guideplates, which,with the block, are capable of being moved entirely across thefeed-board, and when such adjustment is made the guide is at once readyfor use, substantially as described.

2. In combination with a feeding board or base having a grooved trackextended entirely across the board, a single block having right and lefthand adjustable side guideplates, said block having an angular guidingand retaining tongue and said plates having, respectively, anapproximately- V shaped guiding and guarding tongue, a screw-rod, meansfor operating said screw-rod, means for holding the rod after it hasbeen operated, and means for holding the guide at any posi tion on thefeed-board, substantially as described.

3. The side guide consisting of a block having an angular guiding andretaining tongue, right and left hand guarding and guiding plates, anadjusting screw-rod to which the plates are attached and which is heldby said plates from turning, and means for operating said screw-rod foradjusting the plates 02, means for holding the screw from moving afterthe adjustment is made, and means for holding the guide in any desiredposition, substantially as described.

4. The combination of the feed-board and its track-plates and the sideguide consisting of the block having an angular guiding and retainingtongue, a guarding and guiding plate n, the screw-rod, the ratchetwheel,the pawl, and the locking-lever, substantially as described.

5. The combination of the feed-board, a guide-track having its plate acurved, as at c, and a block having an angular guiding and retainingtongue, and a side guide-plate having a guiding-tongue curved, as at j,substantially as described.

6. The side guide comprising a block, a screw-rod, a guiding-plate, aratchet-wheel, a pawl, and a locking-lever, all operating in combinationwith one another and with the feeding-board or feeding-base of a press,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses.

FREDERICK C. DAVIS. Witnesses:

THOMAS HOLBROOK, CHAS. P. RAYMOND.

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